Obama to Discuss Russian Plan at Security Council

The United States will discuss Russia’s proposal regarding Syria’s chemical weapons at the UN Security Council, U.S. officials reported Tuesday.

U.S. President Barack Obama spoke about the matter with British Prime Minister David Cameron and French President Francois Hollande. The three leaders agreed to the Security Council discussion, which will take place Tuesday.

France is planning to put forth a five-point resolution that would include a condemnation of the chemical attack in Syria on August 21, openness regarding Syria’s weapons of mass destruction and putting them under international control.

Russia has proposed that Syria’s chemical weapons be put under “international supervision,” and later destroyed. Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime has agreed in principle to the arrangement.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says America supports the Russian proposal and sees it as the ideal solution, but will not tolerate delay. “We’re waiting for that proposal, but we’re not waiting for long,” he warned.

American and British leaders previously appeared to be on the verge of military intervention in Syria over the use of chemical weapons. However, strong opposition both at home and abroad led both Obama and Cameron to delay military action.

Obama is scheduled to give a national address at 9 p.m. Eastern time (4 a.m. in Israel). His speech was originally intended to rally support for airstrikes in Syria; but he may take a different approach depending on the results of the Security Council debate.

As long as the Russian proposal has not gone into effect, America must maintain a credible military threat vis-à-vis Syria, U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel warned, speaking to the House Armed Services Committee.